Two police officers are to face prosecution for using excessive violence against a demonstrator during a coronavirus protest in The Hague in March this year.

The public prosecution department said in a statement on Friday that the violence used against one protestor, which was caught on camera, was disproportionate and the case was serious enough to be taken to court.

The victim was left with both head injuries and was bitten by a police dog.

Ik vind dit vrij ‘fors’… man pakt de hond slim beet om een hap te voorkomen, maar vervolgens krijgt hij klappen op zijn hoofd 🙄 #malieveld pic.twitter.com/CISBvFrtGa

— Groetjes (@LennSmit) March 14, 2021

The Hague’s mayor Jan van Zanen ordered the protest to be broken up because far more than the agreed 200 people had come to the Malieveld area near the city’s main railway station. In total, 20 people were arrested.

Several demonstrators made formal complaints about the police behaviour. All the complaints have now been assessed, the public prosecutor said.

The public prosecution department has not yet decided whether or not to press charges against the man who was hit on the head. He reportedly ran after police horses and threw a car jump lead he had been waving at the police.

Amnesty International also called for an investigation into the way police broke up the demonstration, saying the video footage shows a disproportionate use of violence.